Welcome back to the Sunstone Way!
Twenty-five years ago tomorrow was a dark, dark day in the USA.
We call Sept. 11 Patriot Day, acknowledging the nearly 3,000 people who died on Sept. 11, 2001, as a result of the Al Qaeda terrorist network hijacking of four passenger jets and crashing them into the Twin Towers in New York City, the Pentagon across the Potomac River from the nation’s capital and a Pennsylvania meadow after passengers tried to retake the airplane.
It was the worst attack ever on American soil – 2,977 people died on 9/11, compared to 2,404 at the attack on Pearl Harbor at the beginning of World War II. It seems hard to argue that the world didn’t change on 9/11, and that the impact is still being felt 25 years later.
Flags will be at half-staff, and ceremonies will be dedicated to those who lost their lives that day. I’ll be thinking of them. I hope you do, too.
Life Moves On
One way to acknowledge those we lost is to live the best way we know how – that was a rallying cry in the days after the attack, and it is true today. Here at Sunstone, we’re gearing up for a very busy fall full of tech weeks, forums, and conferences dedicated to making our world, our country, our community a better place for all.
We will be at these gatherings to make connections, to offer our services and expertise, and to lay the foundation for future partnerships. Some of the events – particularly LA and Long Beach Tech Weeks – will help the innovative founders we support find an audience for their goods and services. Others, like the California Climate Leadership Forum and the California Economic Summit, will further the P3 (Public-Private Partnership) approach to solving difficult community challenges.
In Our Back Yard
Not surprisingly, a lot of this activity takes place in California. We are fortunate to be part of the strong California climate of innovation – technological innovation, economic development innovation, even infrastructure financing innovation.
Our Tech Weeks and Tech Days are designed to provide both connections and ideas, where founders mingle with successful business owners and investors. Remember the amazing energy generated by the Irvine Tech Day this spring? That spotlight on founders, with networking opportunities on top of specific ways to get help is replicated and more at Long Beach Tech Week and LA Tech Week.
Just look at the agenda for Long Beach, organized by the Long Beach Accelerator. There will be a Capital Corner explaining ways to find the money to build businesses. There’s a Demo Day from our friends at Cal State Long Beach and the Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship for founders and startups to showcase their ideas. Investors will share what they look for and how they decide where to put their money. And – a Long Beach exclusive – there will be a preview of LA2028 Olympics opportunities.
Cities Have Opportunities
Those Tech Weeks fall largely to our teams at the Sunstone Venture & Innovation Center and the marketing arm of Sunstone Investment Management Services. Another category of conferences is the place where our Sunstone Cities team shines.
We start in Anaheim Sept. 23-25 for the 2026 League of California Cities Conference and Expo. Municipal leaders from all over the state will gather to talk about the problems they face and where they might find solutions.
I’m looking forward to reconnecting with colleagues from my days as an Economic Development Director for Long Beach, and our Sunstone Cities team will be on hand to see how we can assist these communities.
Then there is the California Economic Summit, which takes place next month in Long Beach. Put together by the nonprofit California Forward, this conference brings together diverse public and private partners to build fiscal and energy resilience in our ever-changing environment – both the physical and the economic environment.
Sunstone Cities is a primary sponsor of the Summit, and I am grateful for the chance to participate as a panel member. The connections we and our peers make at this event will help drive California into the future.
Big Day in Big Apple
One of my favorite activities is just a couple of weeks away. I get to be part of an event where California has the chance to show off our thoughtful approaches to our changing climate to a national audience at Climate Week NYC.
Climate Week NYC, put on by the nonprofit Climate Group, takes place in the Big Apple. But, as is fitting with California’s development of initiatives to address climate change, the first day is devoted to the California Climate Leadership Forum. I’m honored to be part of the California delegation.
Participating in all of these gatherings is another important way to build the partnerships that make our communities better places to live and work. That’s the Sunstone Way!
And remember to always be a Sunstone.
John Keisler
CEO & Managing Partner
Sunstone
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Sunstone Investment Group, headquartered in Southern California, is the holding company for the Sunstone family of entities, including: Sunstone Investment Management Services, responsible for administrative services; Sunstone Advisors, an SEC-registered investment adviser, which oversees Sunstone Venture Partners LLC, a private capital fund manager; Sunstone Cities, a government economic development consulting firm; and Sunstone Community Fund, a charitable organization that supports entrepreneurship. Sunstone is dedicated to enriching lives through investment, entrepreneurship, and community.
The information and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the Sunstone Investment Group and are provided for informational purposes only. This content is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice, a solicitation, or an offer to buy or sell any security or financial product. The opinions expressed herein are subject to change without notice and should not be relied upon as the basis for any investment decision. Readers are encouraged to consult with their own legal, tax, and financial advisers before making any investment decisions.
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©Sunstone, 2026